Looking for answers | Sports Daily Newsletter

Every fifth day begged the question.

Can Andrew Painter keep pitching for the Phillies?

We got our answer a couple hours after his latest rough start, when he was demoted to triple-A Lehigh Valley after allowing six runs on six hits in two innings of the Phillies’ 12-4 loss to the Miami Marlins.

“The fastball’s just getting hit right now,” Painter said postgame, before the demotion. “So, you know, I think we’ve just got to evaluate. Just trying to find out who I am as a pitcher right now.”

As for who might replace him? Alan Rangel led the IronPigs’ starting rotation with an ERA of 3.74 before his start Wednesday night.

Meanwhile, Trea Turner returned to the lineup and was one of the Phillies’ few bright spots on Wednesday.

— Maria McIlwain, @phillysport, sports.daily@inquirer.com.

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❓The MLB trade deadline is a little over six weeks away. If you were Dave Dombrowski, what moves, if any, would you make and why? Email us back for a chance to be featured in the newsletter.

Next time we see the Eagles, at least in an official capacity, it’ll be for the start of training camp.

Feels like forever from now, doesn’t it?

In the meantime, Jeff Neiburg tackles the biggest questions surrounding the Birds at this point in the offseason. Read along as he unpacks storylines like who’s backing up Jalen Hurts? Or will there be any newcomers ahead of camp?

🏈 Reading: Jeff McLane’s deep dive into the role Jeffrey Lurie’s son plays within Eagles management.

🥊 Following: The professional fighting career of Gianna Vadino, a former Inquirer intern and Philly resident.

🧠 Learning: About the legacy of trailblazing golfer Charlie Sifford and how it’s helping HBCU students with Philly ties.

It’s a question many are asking: What’s going on with Christian Pulisic’s calf? But unlike other sports, U.S. Soccer isn’t obligated to answer, as FIFA doesn’t require public injury reports in international tournaments.

So besides the team’s training staff and a select few on the technical staff, it’ll be a wait-and-see until the starting 11 for Friday’s second Group D match for the Americans is released. Jonathan Tannenwald has an update from the team’s camp in Irvine, Calif., and insight on FIFA’s rule.

Here at home, the Union on Wednesday parted ways with longtime defender Olivier Mbaizo. The Cameroon native played nine seasons in Chester but appeared just once in MLS play this season.

Be sure to tune in today at 11 a.m., when Inquirer writer Jonathan Tannenwald and host Lisa Carlin recap the first week of the World Cup and get you set for another weekend full of matches, including the second match for the Americans against Australia and Philly’s monster match Friday between Brazil and Haiti. Watch here.

Fun fact: The architect of the NBA champion New York Knicks got his start in South Jersey. As a teenager, he helped put Cherry Hill East on the map, then brought the intensity he learned there to his role as a coach for scores of kids at the Katz Jewish Community Center.

So for his former pupils taking in Game 5 of the NBA Finals last weekend, Rose’s words after the Knicks’ closeout win really resonated.

“It sounded like he was talking to us,” said one of those former players, Sam Friedman, “back when we were 13 or 14 years old.”

We know, we know, the season just ended. But media outlets across the country are already putting out power rankings. Here’s how the Sixers stack up.

Next: The NBA draft is Tuesday and Wednesday (8 p.m., 6abc, ESPN). Tune in tomorrow when our Gina Mizell talks all things draft on Gameday Central.

It’s a tale as old as time: two kids meet and bond over a shared love of a specific sport, hockey in this case.

No, this story doesn’t unfold in Minnesota or Canada. It unfolded in the Cayman Islands. Now those kids are NHL draft prospects after taking their talents north.

The Inquirer caught up with Jaxon Cover and Ryder Cali to talk about their journeys from the Caribbean and what’s next.

Next: The Toronto Maple Leafs have the first pick in the NHL draft, which begins June 26 (7 p.m., ESPN) and runs through June 27.

Seventy-eight years ago today, Robin Roberts embarked on a Hall of Fame career. The righty, who played 19 big league seasons (14 of which were with the Phillies) made his MLB debut on June 18, 1948, and allowed two runs on five hits with two walks and two strikeouts in eight innings. The 21-year-old took the loss that day against the Pittsburgh Pirates, but he went on to earn seven straight All-Star nods, famously pitch 28 straight complete games (the 28th coincidentally was vs. the Pirates), and get elected to the Hall of Fame in 1976. He compiled a career 286-245 record, 3.41 ERA, and struck out 2,357 batters. Roberts died at age 83 in 2010.

It’s never too early to peek in on magic numbers (or maybe the wild card race), and as we inch ever closer to the halfway point of the MLB season, The Inquirer’s got you covered — and not just for the Phillies.

Here’s a place to access your favorite Philadelphia teams’ statistics, schedules, and standings in real time.

Jalen Brunson and Jalen Hurts have quite a bit in common. Collegiate success, check. First name, check. And notably, they weren’t expected to make a huge impact in the pros.

Well, now they’ve reached the pinnacle of their respective leagues. And as Brunson rides through Manhattan’s “Canyon of Heroes” today, maybe he should do so wearing Hurts’ jersey.

After all, he’s done so before.

We asked: Good or bad, what do you think is the most consequential trade in Philly sports history and why?

Rick Wise for Steve Carlton. It set us up for a good run from 1976 to 1983. — Jack M.

In my book-and I’m 70 years old-the Steve Carlton for Rick Wise trade changed the future of the Phillies. Carlton being the lead horse on a pitching staff that needed shutdown or shutout capabilities. Winning 27 games on a below .500 team, Carlton’s strikeout capabilities almost always guaranteed the Phillies would be in every game he pitched. Nonetheless, Steve Carlton led the Phillies to its 1980 WS Championship — it’s first-then came back for a 1983 World Series as well. — Gene M.

Steve Carlton from the St Louis Cardinals for Rick Wise in 1972. “Lefty” became a Hall of Famer, won 4 Cy Young awards and led the Phillies a winning team in the late ’70s, culminating in a World Series championship in 1980. — Bob C.

On February 7, 1971, at the old Philadelphia Arena on 45th and Market Streets, Roller Derby’s Jim Trotter, a notorious “most hated” skater for the Texas Outlaws was traded at halftime and returned as a Philadelphia Warrior in the second half and became an absolute legend, rolling to sellout crowds and world championships in Philadelphia. It was greatest trade in Philadelphia sports history and was even referenced on Page 63 of my book, Yavapai Means Winning Soccer. Okay, I’ll go with Steve Carlton for Rick Wise. Acquiring the return of Wilt Chamberlain from the San Francisco Warriors and Norm Van Brocklin from the Los Angeles Rams brought titles to Philly as well. — Mike P.

The Phillies trade of pitcher Rick Wise to the Cardinals for Steve Carlton has to be the most famous and best trade in Philly sports history. With Steve leading the way the Phillies won their first World Series in the team’s history. — Everett S.

I gave this same answer a couple weeks ago since for me, this is one of the biggest trades in all sports. Rick Wise for Steve Carlton. Carlton was a major part of the Phillies winning their 1st world series, is in the HOF and still roots for the Phils! — Dave S.

Many will think the trade of Rick Wise for Steve Carlton was the most consequential trade but I would argue differently. In April of 1966 the Phillies traded Ferguson Jenkins and Adolfo Phillips to the Cubs for Larry Jackson and Bob Buhl. Jenkins went on to win more than 15 games in 18 seasons having won 20 in seven consecutive seasons. He was an All-Star three times. A Cy Young winner and a strike out and complete games leader, he was inducted in the Hall of Fame in 1991. Adolfo Phillips’ career, while rather pedestrian by most standards had two really good years for Chicago following the trade and had a lifetime BA of .250. Jackson, a very veteran pitcher went 41- 45 for the Phillies over the next three seasons. Buhl, another very veteran pitcher, went 6 - 8 in that 1966 season and was out of baseball after 3 starts in the ’67 season. I was 15 at the time and still trying to shake off the trauma of the ’64 season and the mediocrity of the ’65 season when I tuned in to an opening game Phillies broadcast where I learned of the trade. I was young but even then I saw the trade for what it was; a sell-off of future competitiveness in a desperate attempt to remain relative for one more year. Sadly the Phillies didn’t learn anything from this disaster as they went on to trade Ryne Sandberg (and Larry Bowa) to these same Cubs a decade later. Sandberg became Rookie of the Year, MVP, 10 time All-Star and Hall of Famer. The Philles got DeJesus for three seasons. — Kenneth M.

My opinion: the Bernie Parent trade. We Traded him to Toronto in a three-way deal with the Bruins, who sent the Flyers Rick MacLeish. Bernie goes to Toronto to learn under Jacques Plante, then gets traded back to the Flyers and the rest is history. A HOFer, 2 cups and became a Philly legend. — Bryan B.

We compiled today’s newsletter using reporting from Scott Lauber, Jeff Neiburg, Jeff McLane, Ariel Simpson, Jonathan Tannenwald, Owen Hewitt, Alex Coffey, Jackie Spiegel, and Marcus Hayes.

By submitting your written, visual, and/or audio contributions, you agree to The Inquirer’s Terms of Use, including the grant of rights in Section 10.

Thanks for reading! Kerith will be back tomorrow to close out your week. — Maria